


Prisoners

by noblegirl91



Category: Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-12
Updated: 2020-04-12
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:07:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,106
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23614234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noblegirl91/pseuds/noblegirl91
Summary: Short drabble about yet another round of imprisonment for the Doctor and Peritw: torture - mention of it but nothing graphic
Relationships: Peri Brown & Sixth Doctor, Peri Brown/Sixth Doctor
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	Prisoners

The thick steel door clanged as it struck the concrete wall, flung open by a forceful kick. Peri ceased her anxious pacing as two soldiers dragged the semi-conscious Time Lord back into their cell, dumping him at her feet. 

“We’ll try again in the morning. Maybe your woman will have helped you see reason by then.” 

The door slammed closed again as Peri knelt down to tend to the Doctor. 

“Doctor? Are you okay?” She managed to get him upright and began checking him for injuries before what little light there was coming from the small barred window disappeared. Their cell must not have been far from wherever they were interrogating him because Peri had heard his screams and feared what shape he’d be in when he returned… if he returned.

His wrists were red and raw from being restrained. There was a large bruise forming beside his right eye that looked to be several hours old. He had a light spattering of dried blood on his shirt collar which caused her concern since she couldn’t find any cuts on him. 

“I’m alright Peri,” he finally managed, his voice sounding hoarse. “There’s no need to make a fuss.” He waved off her attention then attempted to stand on his own but barely made it to his knees before wincing and falling back again.

“Would you take it easy? Let me help you.” 

Giving in he allowed Peri to assist him. The Doctor grimaced trying to suppress crying out in pain when Peri wrapped an arm around his torso to steady him. 

Fearing she’d hurt him she loosened her grip. “Sorry, sorry!” 

Slowly they shuffled across the room and got him into as comfortable a position as possible on the cot which was little more than a thin cushion stretched across a rickety metal frame. 

“Do you mind if I take a look?”

The Doctor shook his head. His waistcoat was already undone making it easy for Peri to untuck one side of his shirt and examine the area that was troubling him. Even in the fading light it wasn’t difficult to make out the dark crimson discoloration forming around his ribs; no doubt it would be black and blue by morning. 

“I’m no expert but you might have some broken ribs.” 

He gingerly felt his along his rib cage, hissing through his teeth whenever he hit a tender spot. “Just a few deep tissue contusions that’s all.”

“That’s all huh?” She wasn’t sure whether that was true or if he was just putting on a brave face to make her feel better. Right now though the only thing that would make her feel better would be getting to the Tardis and getting far away from this hellhole. 

They’d landed here by accident of course and the locals were anything but friendly since they were in the midst of a war with a neighboring state. They’re leaders had jumped to the conclusion that she and the Doctor were enemy spies. Before they could convinced them that they were merely innocent passersby they decided that the Doctor’s intellect could be of use and tried to persuade him to reconstruct a rather insidious weapon salvaged from a crashed alien warship. Just the thing they needed to turn the tide in their favor. His refusal to do so is what had led them to this point. 

“Well… maybe a slight fracture, but nothing serious,” he finally admitted.

She sat next to him as he laid back and closed his eyes. He looked exhausted, physically and mentally. “What did they do to you?” she asked even though she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to know. 

“Once they got bored with me refusing to answer their questions they thought they could extract the information they wanted using a mind probe. I resisted which is why they got a bit physical, trying to break my concentration.” 

“I’d say we should find a way out of here before they come back but you’re in no shape to move.”

“Escape, yes I’m working on-” He attempted to sit up but Peri put her hand across his chest preventing him from doing so.

“It can wait. I know that you hate being told this but you need to rest.”

He let out a reluctant sighed, “You’re probably right Peri.

“Wow, you’re being cooperative; you must be worse off than I thought.”

“Don’t get used to it; I’ll be back to my belligerent self in no time.” By the time he’d finished speaking he was already drifting off to sleep. 

The soldiers had said that they’d begin their next round of interrogation in the morning but Peri didn’t take them at their word. As the Doctor rested she made it her duty to stand guard. Of course she had no idea what she would do when they came for him but she felt she needed to be alert. 

She spent the next few hours forcing herself to stay awake, pacing around the tiny cell, occasionally listening at the door for any activity. At one point she attempted to formulate an escape plan of her own but she didn’t know enough about where they were to get very far with that. Eventually her own exhaustion got the better of her. She took a seat on the cot beside the Doctor. Leaning back against the wall Peri immediately felt her eyes growing heavy.

Okay just a couple minutes of shut eye but that’s it. What harm could that do, she thought to herself as sleep overtook her.

Peri hadn’t been out for long when she jolted awake fearing she’d overslept. Becoming more aware of her surroundings she realized that she was no longer sitting up but lying on her side. Deciding that she could have changed positions in her sleep she didn’t think any more of it until she went to move and found that she couldn’t. Trying not to panic Peri took a deep breath choking back a startled cry. A simple wiggle of her extremities assured her that she hadn’t suddenly become paralyzed which meant that something was holding her in place. Had the guards been in here while she was sleeping?

As her eyes finally adjusted to the darkness she discovered the cause of her immobility –the Doctor. He had somehow managed to curl himself around her, his large frame engulfing her as he held her firmly to his chest while he slept. As far as she could tell his arms were wrapped around her middle and one leg crossed over the top of hers while the other was bent and drawn up behind her knees. 

Relieved that it was only him and not something their captors had done to restrain her she now suspected that it had been the Doctor who had moved her. Whether or not he was conscious of their current position was another question. Not that it bothered her. She’d gotten quite used to the Time Lord invading her personal space. He had a habit of throwing his arm around her that she’d come to regard as his way of being affectionate. But his grip on her at the moment, as affectionate as it might appear, was purely protective. This was the Doctor trying to put himself at ease, making sure she didn’t disappear without him knowing. He was still attempting to keep her safe even in his ailing state.

It continually amazed Peri how quickly the Doctor’s personality could switch from bombastic and easily agitated to gentle and tactile. Underneath that course and often times prickly exterior he was truly a sweet starry-eyed romantic who worried about her well-being more than he often let on. 

Peri was touched by his concern. Both of them knew it was only a matter of time before these people turned to threatening her as a means of getting the Doctor to cooperate. Ensuring that he was too weak to fight back on her behalf might be part of their strategy. If the Doctor did have a plan she’d love to hear it but until then they were just going to have to do their best to survive. 

One of her arms was pinned underneath and starting to go numb. She squirmed trying to get it free. Instinctively the Doctor reacted assuming someone was trying to take her from him and tightened his hold defensively. Luckily as he shifted to maintain his grip Peri was able to move her arm into a more comfortable position. She relaxed into his embrace and his grip loosened again. At least that answered the question of him being alert enough to stop her from being taken. With little else to do Peri let herself drift back to sleep hoping the rest of the night would pass without incident. 

****  
The sun was just starting to rise when Peri was roused from her sleep. She laid there for a moment, eyes closed, hoping that when she opened them she’d be back in the Tardis, that the muffled blasts she could hear was the Doctor making his usual racket, and that she had only dreamt that they were being held prisoner. 

Opening her eyes at last she cursed under her breath as she stared up at the grey concrete ceiling overhead. It was then she realized that something was amiss.

“Doctor?” She bolted upright afraid he been hauled away again. 

“It’s alright Peri I’m here,” he answered, clearly noting the dread in her voice. The Doctor was standing by the door, his ear pressed against it. 

“How are you even standing? You could hardly walk last night.”

“A little rest goes a long way.”

Peri continued gawking at him. It was a miraculous recovery. The bruise on his face seemed to have almost disappeared but she was still skeptical about the bruising on his ribs. 

“Oh don’t look so surprised. You watched me regenerate into an entirely new person it shouldn’t shock you that my body can recover from a few scrapes and bruises in a few short hours.”

He turned his attention back to the commotion outside. “Hear that? I believe that’s the cavalry come to our rescue.” 

“What cavalry?” She climbed off the cot and joined him. Beyond their cell door Peri could make out the unmistakable sounds of battle. 

“Turns out there were spies in the camp; they just captured the wrong ones. I found this note slipped under the door. Our capture and my subsequent interrogation was just the distraction the other side needed to throw suspicion off those under cover and allow them to finish organizing.” 

“When did you find that?”

“About an hour ago. Why?”

“It’s a little too convenient don’t you think? What if it’s a trick to get you to help them? A bluff? They pose as their own enemy, help us escape to gain our trust and then, I don’t know, try to convince you that they need that weapon more.”

The Doctor scowled at his pessimistic companion. “Have a little faith in me will you Peri? I’m well aware of the potential for being double crossed. Which is why I don’t plan on stopping for anything once this door is open. We head straight for the Tardis.”

“Sounds good to me. Let’s just hope they don’t shoot us in the back as we escape.” It wasn’t much of a plan but since it was the best they could do she’d take it. “Wait what about the weapon? Surely you aren’t going to leave it with them?”

“It’s harmless. They’re missing a crucial component for the power source; it will never work without it.” There was a mischievous glint in his eye.

“Let me guess. That oh so crucial piece just happened to mysteriously fall into your pocket right?”

“Better than letting it fall into the wrong hands wouldn’t you say?”

The fighting was getting closer. Outside their window they could hear the soldiers scrambling to their posts as laser fire rang out not far from the prison compound. It sounded as though more troops were arriving to overrun the base. A few seconds later there was a heavy metallic clunk from the other side of the door as the bolt was released. With a cautious hand the Doctor eased open the door enough to take a peer into the hallway. It was a literal madhouse. Other prisoners were emerging from their cells and joining the fight, using whatever they could get their hands on to attack anyone in their way to freedom. 

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder. “Ready?

“As I’ll ever be.”

He took her hand and threw open the door. “Run!”


End file.
